Mineral Point tribune. (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1869-1938, 1887-07-21

wtuskereu ulan OF suostahtlal appearance,
''that the ghost has begun to walk agaia
since the squires DEATH"
"What ghosts" asked a younger man,
with an inoredulous laugh. Il never
heard of ghost at Wsterdell.n
"Ne, you mayn't," said the first man;
"but I've heard it from my father, times
upon times, that before Squire Dacre
come here there were a power of queer
things seen and heard at Waterdell, and
they say that since he's dead, they be
come back"
They say; who sayss" asked a thin,
weasel-facod farmer.
"Well, my man Marvel, for one; he went
across by the spinney last night, where he
has been almost every evening this thirty
year, and he swears that he saw some one
walking up and down the long path and
heard some awful noises"
"Ahv said the thin man, with a grunt,
"Marvel always were liar
"Liar or no liar" said the farmer,
rather angrily, my father saw the ghost
himself sixty years ago; often and often
he has told me of it, and | believe tie old
Squire knew of it, too; for he never
laughed or scoffed as some folks do with
|
| ghosts"
And so the talk shifted on to other mat
ters and Mr.. Jenifer was left to contem-
plate another element of absurdity intro
duced into his well-arranged, common
place existence, and felt quite angry at
the thought that he, of all men, should by
the irony OF fate, be brought into a ghost
story. But as he never had believed in
ghosts he did not mean to begin now;
and after inqulring his way to Waterdell
Hall, he found that he must start at
once if he wished to reach there before
night-fall. 1t was a somewhat dull walk,
which led him at last along a narrow
road ending in an abrupt descent. The
high hedges on either side had lost their
Summer beauty without yet gaining the
glory of Autumn; the few roseberries
were sickly-looking and frosted with a
whitish blight, and their leaves hung
shivefing on the twigs, while in the fields
beyond the evening mists were already
rising. The road turned sharply to the
right, and then Waterdell II all lay before
its future owner.
To a cheerful eye it might have seemed
nesting in a bowery of greenery; but
Jenifer, out of tune with things in general
and tired with his walk, saw in it's with
drawal from the high road guilty seclu-
sion from observation. Four tall Yelling
tonians rose dark and solemn above the
little wicket gate and cast gloom over
the garden patch, in which some late
geraniums and petunias only served by
their touches of brilliant color to accen-
tuate the general melancholy. The house
instead of boldly looking forth on the
passef-by, turned its face away from the
road and has no prospect bu. the little
bit of garden and the four sentinel
trees.
The doors stood open and Mr.. Jenifer
catered a narrow passage where no wei
coming footsteps came to meet his own
only Virginia creeper, torn by the wind,
tapped on the porch otherwise all was
still. Mr.. Jeniter looked around him for
q moment, and then went through the
house to the chief sitting room. 1t was
neither large nor high, but it had that
individual charm which only age and
years of occupation can give. The old
fas2ined mattel reached, with its dark, rich
carvings to the ceiling across which was
massive oaken beam, nearly black with
age, the fire place with its glazing logs
gave out cheerful glimmer, reflected in
the small quarries of the window oppo
site, over which hung a carved scroll,
whose inscription there was not light
enough to read. Mr. Jenifer breathed
sigh of relief at the comfortable appear
ance here in contrast to the depressing
as pect of the rest of the house; but in
stead of settling himself by the fire, he
again went to look over the surrounding
property. Behind, the ground rose alb
Tuptly and was bounded by q closely
growing coppice, through which a narrow
path seemed to strike toward the village.
The parson climbed the hill, leaving the
coppice on his left, and standing on the
highest portion of the meadow looked
across the low hedge at the last pageant
of the su nset. Some elm trees were sill
houetted against the sky, athwart which
lay bars of rosy flame, tender evanescent
One moment the dying light leaped up
brighter, and throbbed through all the
burning heaven, and then it died away,
and the day was not.
Jenifer turned and looked at the hall.
Already it seemed to be losing itself in
the darkness which gathered round it.,
hiding in the recesses of the gables draw
ing curtains of mist over the twisted
lutte, struck almost with oppression
on the MUD of this man accustomed to
city noises but even as he thought to
himself, How still it all is" there sound
ed in the coppice close by him long,
sobbing cry, which rose and fell, and rose
again, and then ceased.
Clement Jenifer was not particularly
tender hearted or compassionate man, but
that sudden cry filled him with vague
fear of some cruel deed just perpetrated
some awful mystery to be brought to
light, and after a moments hesitation he
turned in the direction of whence it had
seemed to come, and found himself on a
long path with thick yew hedge on
either side. Far ahead, in the dim twi
light, he could descry a figure walking
slowly away from him; he could hear a
moaning sound, as of some one in pain.
Mr.. Jenifer hastened his pace in order to
come up with the sufferer, and as he gain
ed on him and could see him more dis
tinctly, 1T seemed to him that there was
something familiar in the gait and bear
ing of the unknown. And as he so
thought the figure turned. and facing